Saturday, August 07, 2010

Sports question pitched to the A+ Schools question sink hole

Sports within a school that ranges from grades 6 to 12 require gyms and athletic spaces for both high school and middle school teams. One gym or one swim pool, even large gyms, can't work for two schools.
The sports teams will not fit into PPS WESTINGHOUSE 6-12, just as they do not work at Schenley / Obama @ Reizenstein (another PPS 6-12 school) and soon to be @ Peabody.

In basketball season, for example, six different teams (Varsity, JV, Middle School for both boys and girls) must practice and play games. Gyms are used for wrestling, dances, Physical Education, spring sport conditioning, intramurals, and hopefully community-club teams with wrap around services.
There have been no plans nor answers on how to fix this serious problem with the schools -- except to drop the ball with athletics.

To combat street gangs, we need sports gangs and school gangs with challenging and high quality enrichment in realms where parents and coaches and educators control.

If sports are a priority, then PPS MUST double the size of its athletic facilities at all 6-12 schools, including locker-rooms.

Does PPS really care about sports and afterschool?

If PPS does care, when and how are the athletic facilities going to double? And, how much does that investment cost?